Hi everyone, I joined this dream forum because i am having a tough time at the moment in normal waking life and i think this is showing in my dreams because they have changed totally. They are not restful or happy anymore, instead they are strange and upsetting, usually strong enough to upset me for the rest of the day. I would really appreciate any help or insight into these dreams. The first reoccurring dream is a dream about my ex. The theme is always the same, he is breaking up with me and im powerless to do anything about it and grief comes crashing down on me. However it never happens in the same place twice eg the beach, my home or the street. Im crying in my dream and then i hear my dads voice calling my name, it sounds so real that it wakes me and i always wake screaming, crying and with the solid weight of grief on me. The second dreams which occur 3/4 times a week are always animal related. Most of the time including my pet rat and dog. I usually end up killing the rat by accident/neglect and seeing his eyes staring at me and his little mouth hanging open like he had died a terrible death. Other times its my mum hurting the pets and im screaming at her trying to stop it happening but it happens and im trying not to see it. One time she fed my rat to my dog and i had to watch it happen. Another time she let my dog get injured and he was left out all night by himself. I always feel so worried, helpless and guilty in the dreams. I have also dreamt about black panthers and lions in my house and garden, im usually trying to get past them up a stair case or towards something and they either lie there watching or they claw and bite at me. I realise there is a lot of information there, but it was either get it all out at once or not at all. please please feel free to offer any opinion, and thank you so much for any insight you may have.
All of these dreams have to do with bad things happenign that you don't have control over. Either other people or animals do or try to do bad things to you, or in the case of killing your rat, you do it by accident or neglect. It sounds to me like you could be suffering from depression. People who are depressed often feel like they have little no control over the events around them. They feel like they are the victim of other people, of circumstances or of their own inadequacies. They don't have the energy/desire to try to change things to make things better; and they think they can't make things better. You said you are having a tough time in waking life. I think you need to deal with that, and then your dreams will eventually get better.